Sales of Batteries for Use by Consumers Will Approach $7 Billion in 2020

January 20 2017

The freedonia Group

Consumer battery demand totaled $6.1 billion in 2015, accounting for over two-fifths of the overall battery market. Through 2020, sales of batteries used in consumer applications are forecast to expand 2.5 percent per annum, the slowest pace of increase of any major market but an improvement from the 2010-2015 period, when advances were dampened by accelerating trends away from Ni-Cad and Ni-MH rechargeable chemistries in various consumer applications. These and other trends are presented in Battery Markets in the US, a new study from The Freedonia Group, a Cleveland-based industry research firm.

Rechargeable batteries dominate consumer battery demand, accounting for nearly two-thirds of the total in 2015. According to analyst E. Reta Sober, “The rising energy requirements of many consumer devices support an ongoing shift in demand toward rechargeable batteries and away from single-use cells.” The greater cost-effectiveness and longer useful life of rechargeable types compared to single-use batteries support this trend.

Through 2020, single-use batteries will continue to underperform rechargeable types. Alkaline cells will remain the dominant single-use battery type through 2020, in part due to the large existing base of consumer products that run on alkaline cells and require periodic replacement. Alkaline-dependent products include many consumer entertainment and portable lighting devices, as well as smoke detectors and many toys and games. In addition, some manufacturers offer alkaline batteries specifically engineered for use in photography equipment.

Battery Markets in the US (published 12/2016, 199 pages) is available for $4900 from The Freedonia Group. For further details or to arrange an interview with the analyst, please contact Corinne Gangloff by phone 440.684.9600 or email pr@freedoniagroup.com.